Art, Fantasy or Just Plain Weird

$7.6 Million for Candy 

When I opened the paper this morning, there on the front page among today's top headlines was a picture of a piece of art that consisted of nothing but a line of candy, an endless supply.  

Shocked and amazed that someone would spend that kind of money on candy art I thought, there has to be more than I know........and there is.  It is an interesting, perplexing story of an artist born and raised in Puerto Rico and Cuba later moving to New York to study and create.

Knowledge is power and the more I read about this artist, the more I became captivated more by his story than by piles of candy.  The meaning behind this piece of art is beautiful, inspiring, haunting and thought provoking, more so than the actual so called art piece.

One of Gonzalez-Torres’s “candy spills,” “Untitled” (Placebo), 1991, consists of 1,200 pounds of silver-wrapped hard candy arranged as a stunning carpet on the floor of the museum’s largest gallery. Visitors are invited to take a candy and in so doing, contribute to the slow disappearance of the sculpture over the course of the exhibition.  Though Gonzalez-Torres created “Untitled” (Placebo) in response to the AIDS epidemic and, in particular, the loss of his partner, Ross, his use of an everyday commodity like candy allows viewers to draw their own meanings from each of his works.

Torres said that he "wanted the candy to disappear  as his life partner had from AIDS, he wanted nothing left to hurt him anymore."  It was an expression of his love, loss and grief changing his life and him one piece at a time.  

Having experienced great loss and grief, I understand the feelings behind this piece.  Even though the artist later died of AIDS-related complications, his art work continues to live on and receive national attention.

I am left with haunting questions, is there a diagram of how the candy is suppose to be laid out? Does it get old and yucky tasting?  Who is responsible for being the keeper of all the candy that is not on exhibit?  Where does the money $7.6 million go when the artist is dead?  Did he leave a legacy and the money goes to AIDS research ?  On and On they go.....

While my greatest art pieces are those made by the hands of Bo as a child, or later by Ian and Carter Dean, no one would ever pay that kind of money for something I believe is priceless.

So many questions, so few answers but I am learning that where I think $7.6 million could be better spent, I for one will never have that problem.  That money doesn't buy class, education is power and art is at best subjective.

Think, read, study and learn.  A day when you learn at least one thing new is not a day wasted.